When to hold 'em, when to show 'em; clients generally have the right to see case, documents, but the party who foots the bill doesn't

Article Abstract:

Lawyers in general have the obligation to share case documents with clients, however, a party-nonclient paying the bills does not. An example would be a case in South Carolina, where an insurance company who represents its insureds under a liability policy asks the attorney to give an outside auditor copies of its legal bills. South Carolina Ethics Opinikon 97-22(1997) ruled that the lawyer could comply as long as the client's representation would not be substantially affected. Other examples from the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania are given.

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Hedge your bets carefully; caution is advisable when trying to protect fee interest in contingency cases

Article Abstract:

Bar association ethics committees have grappled with the issue of whether a lawyer may withdraw from a contingent fee case in which a client has rejected a proposed settlement the lawyer believes would be the best deal. The committee found the lawyer's trying to withdraw from the case the most troublesome, because it exerted unfair pressure on a client to accept the settlement. The committee in question, the Philadelphia Bar Assn Professional Guidance Committee, did, however, stop short of an outright ban on the practice.

Ethical aspects, Contingency fees

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Afraid of ghosts; lawyers may face real trouble when they 'sort of' represent someone

Article Abstract:

Attorneys who ghostwrite complaints for pro se litigants run the risk of forming lawyer-client relationships with all attendant duties. The federal district court decision of Laremont-Lopez v. Southeastern Tidewater Opportunity Center ruled that Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11 was nullifed by this practice and that ghostwriting for pro se parties allowed circumvention of other civil procedjure rules. Other courts have expressed misgivings about ghostwriting.

Analysis, Laws, regulations and rules, Practice of law, Pro se representation, Attorney and client

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